GES-4835

6-week summer field course 2025

(Appalachian State University)

“Dr. Lutz is extremely passionate about geology and it is obvious in everything he does.”

“Helped keep the energy up around camp.”

“Dr. Lutz was truly excellent and im not just saying that. He was always excited and willing to answer geology questions, he was always full of energy, made himself available and just really provided stoke and interest in geology. I loved this course and Dr. Lutz was a huge part of that. He lead students on cool excursions on days off. I learned so much this trip the majority of that learning was facilitated by Lutz. Great.”

“Able to elaborate about almost any topic.”

“Professor Lutz is very enthusiastic about teaching and has a wealth of knowledge to share.”

“Professor Lutz was a great field instructor and did an excellent job at pointing out geological structures in the field and relating it to topics learned from previous classes. He is also strong at giving feedback, especially for the maps, and makes sure we understand any errors we made so we aren't in the dark on why something was marked incorrect.”

“If we thought he was wrong he encouraged us to read the literature and prove him wrong and if he was he would admit it and wasn’t cocky. Hes an effective communicator and was also just a fun guy to be around.”

“Excitement about the subject. Challenging us and pushing us to do our best work, and motivating us in the field as well. Good at answering questions and making sure we learn and understand.”

“He is knowledgable about the concepts covered in the classes and knows a lot about the regional geology of the places we went and did our projects at. He is very approachable and makes sure to designate lots of time aside for talking to his students and so they can ask him questions.”

GES-2751

Introduction to Geology Field Methods

(Appalachian State University)

“I like how much he explain things in a very clearly manner”

“The open ended nature of the course, where you as the student are required to make connections in real time really helps build the skills that we will need to be successful in field geology.”

“I liked the hands on aspects of this class, as that is how I learn best.”

“The feedback given on assignments was very detailed and helpful. Professor Lutz was also very quick at responding to emails which helped to clarify any details, schedule out of classroom meetings, or simply help with tech problems.”

“Dr. Lutz challenged me to think critically and did a good job teaching this course.”

“Being able to receive helpful hints when I was stumped helped me in the right direction to figure things out on my own, without removing the sense of challenge.”

“Being out in the field and having to apply what has been taught in the classroom was very useful.“

“For the final it was impactful to have to do the work without any direct confirmation or guidance from Dr. Lutz, as it really forced into my head certain techniques or basic knowledge that is crucial in doing field work.”

GES-1101

Introduction to Physical Geology

(Appalachian State University)

Some common positive themes below without the complaints! Of course plenty of students have negative things to say about my courses.

“The teacher speaked strong and clearly and with differing vocal speeds to keep us engaged audio–wise.”

"The real life examples and connectionsHis teaching style keeps you engaged”

“The assignments before class helped me learn because it allowed me to familiarize myself with the material before class.”

“Dr Lutz was incredibly knowledgeable about geology and was able to anyone about anything they wanted to know. Every lecture he used an app for the class to answer questions and respond to polls which was helpful in keeping the class engaging.”

“I found it helpful to that we had polls in class that kept us paying attention to the content. I also think that Lutz is super passionate and knowledgable about the content, which makes the class interesting and more exciting. It isn't often that a professor is as stoked as he is to teach and talk about their niche. He was also approachable, he was always happy to talk to you about the content after class, go over quiz questions, or prepare for lab.”

“Professor was very thorough with his explanations of the topics.”

“doing daily quizzes to help retain the information we went over in class that day”

“Professor Lutz was enthusiastic and knowledgeable, incorporated fun and engaging elements into his lectures.”

“Dr. Lutz was very passionate and interactive with us when he was lecturing and this always helps me want to actually be in there learning. His slideshows included a lot of color and pictures which also made it more entertaining.”

“Dr. Lutz made each lecture interactive, which allowed me to maintain focus in an otherwise mental lull in the day. He also provided daily quizzes, which – as intimidating as they may sound – were essentially review of what we covered that we would easily pass if we paid attention. These quizzes and interactive questions were also very helpful for exam preparation.”

“He is nice and funny and will answer questions as best as he can when you can be face–to–face with him.”

GES-3530

Winter Field Geology in Death Valley

“Independent work in the field helped me learn and identify what aspects of field work I am good at and what I need to be better at.”

“The hands–on learning and site designs inspired critical thinking, and the teamwork and team–building was a nice touch.”

“All of the assignments were very relevant to the course objectives. Dr. Lutz is very enthusiastic which made the class easy to engage with. He is also approachable and always happy to answer questions. He struck a good balance between helping us and making us figure things out on our own. The Alexander Hills were a fantastic place to do a field camp. Lutz is very knowledgeable about this area, and he made sure that we learned something even when we were between projects. As we drove, he was always pointing out and explaining interesting faults, folds, stratigraphy, etc. Camping on the BLM land was a lot of fun, and Lutz and Baker encouraged us to have fun. Having us do an arcgis assignment was a good idea, because being able to use this software seems like a useful skill.”

“Collaborating with group members and being with Dr. Lutz in the field was very helpful. When Dr. Lutz would be with your group and walk the field with you, this was the most helpful aspect to learning. The ArcGis to complete a digital map was the most useful aspect we learned post Death Valley.”

“The mapping days in the field were very educational, along with their commentary along drives and at various stops.”

“I also really enjoyed the free time after our days out in the field and thought that it was a great balance and helped me so I didn't get burnt out.”

GES-3150 Structural Geology

“Enthusiasm and passion for geology, with effective teaching techniques”

“Dr. Lutz is patienient and has a true passion for his work. He is always enthusiastic to facilitate learning in any way he can, he is especially great at teaching in the field. He understands the subject matter very well.”

“Very passionate about structural geology and good in the field. Has cute sweaters.”

“He is very passionate in his work, likes to engage with students, and is very fun. Often found ways to get us outside or something physical to look at, which I found very useful”

“The final class period is used to tell us about career options in structural geology. I think this is a great idea, and not many of my other classes have discussed career options.”

“He is very approachable.”

“Very kind, Very knowledgeable on topic he's teaching, great to learn from on the field.”